If I were Anishinabe, I might think treaty was a dirty word, a four-letter word. When settlers first came from Europe, there were treaties of friendship and trade, recognizing the sovereignty of the Anishinabe peoples, encouraging trade, arranging occasional prisoner exchanges.
In 1613, the Wampum Belt Treaty was created by the Dutch and the Haudenosaunnee (Iroquois). This is seen as a foundational treaty. A beaded belt, 2 rows of purple – one for a sailing ship and one for a canoe – set between 3 rows of white – peace friendship and perpetuity. The two would move side by side in the waters, not interfering with one another. An early foundational concept of sovereignty and sharing.
Then came the European conflict for control of the new lands. Treaties were signed that dragged the First Nations in the French-English wars. This happened again in the war between Britain and the United States in the early 1800s.
Another foundation stone was created at Niagara Falls in 1764. King George III issued a royal proclamation – The Royal Proclamation of 1763 – for the British administration of North American territories. (The British had just defeated the French (Plains of Abraham, 1759 and a few more battles; Treaty of Paris, 1763). This new larger colony was firmly tied to Great Britain, and some guidelines were laid for treaties and relations with First Nations. At that point in the history of British North America, First Nations held great power and influence on settlement. The British Crown needed the First Nations onside
The Proclamation granted/recognized sovereignty (self-government and title) to the land to the First Nations in the west – west of the Appalachian Mountains in southern North America and west of the existing northern colonies. All land was reserved for indigenous people, unless already ceded or sold, and with hunting rights (resources were to be shared) as well. (Is the proclamation the source of indigenous land rights or does the proclamation merely acknowledge pre-exisiting rights?) This proclamation is an important part of the Canadian constitution and it is frequently used in court cases about land rights.